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Manager: MARTA should double in size
Parker gets it.
no never
The experience that Atlanta had two weeks ago i.e. snow induced highway grid lock, people sleeping in their stranded cars etc, might have changed some minds.
They can extend MARTA lines to outlying suburbs and counties, maybe built another line or two, keep it “heavy rail” and keep it electrified i.e. LIRR, a “commuter railroad” ran like a “heavy rail” transit service that weathers snow and runs like clockwork 98% of the time and has been around since 1834, Oh and Metro-North “railroad” , another “commuter railroad” both work perfectly!
To be honest, Mr. Parker, those expansions are just the beginning. Metro Atlanta also needs commuter rail to take people to Canton and Woodstock; to Athens; to Conyers; and to Macon. I realize MARTA doesn’t have any hand in commuter rail, but it would be faster and cheaper to implement than heavy rail. If we had those options during these latest ice and snow storms, Atlanta might have been able to continue doing business because many people could have gotten home.
I hope MARTA gets the funding needed to build those lines. They’re sorely needed.
Sorry to see a person from Florida make a snide comment about Metro North. I have driven to Wassaic en route to New York City dozens of times. Only once have I been late- due to a track problem . Metro North is a class act. Despite some recent unfortunate accidents, compare the safety of rail transportation to highway travel.
Walt Ghering, chill! I said both LIRR AND Metro-North “work perfectly” and I said “runs like clockwork” no snide comment at all!!! LIRR and Metro-North (East of Hudson) are railroads ran like transit heavy rail because of electricity. They are efficient, clean, fast, and both have excellent “on time” records and been around since 1834 & 1983 respectively. How did you arrive at “snide”? , I’m not hatin!, I’m congratulatin!
P.S. Drink plenty of Hot Chocolate! 
I worked with Keith when was in Charlotte. Smart and a class act. MARTA got a good one with him.
The problem MARTA has is that the smaller counties outside its service area are run by good ol’ boys that see no money in it for them. They successfully killed commuter rail when Purdue got in office, and do everything they can to hamstring MARTA. What they want to have is a privatized system so there is kickback money. MARTA. Operated C-tran in Clayton until it was privatized. 1st Transit took it over, ran it into the ground, and MARTA ended up with it again. C-tran had 24 busses, and for @ least 4 months 8 of their busses were @ MARTA’s heavy maintenance facility getting rebuilt due to lack of maintenance (i.e. water instead of coolamt, lack of preventive maintenance…). MARTA had several busses painted white to cover the missing 3rd of the C-tran fleet because they weren’t allowed to run MARTA colors in Clayton. On time reliability and performance improved dramatically. They also ran at or above capacity at peak times. When C-tran lost fed funding the Clayton County commissioners wouldn’t allow a binding referendum to bring MARTA into the county. Instead they let the system get scrapped.
The problem MARTA has is that the smaller counties outside its service area are run by good ol’ boys that see no money in it for them. They successfully killed commuter rail when Purdue got in office, and do everything they can to hamstring MARTA. What they want to have is a privatized system so there is kickback money. MARTA. Operated C-tran in Clayton until it was privatized. 1st Transit took it over, ran it into the ground, and MARTA ended up with it again. C-tran had 24 busses, and for @ least 4 months 8 of their busses were @ MARTA’s heavy maintenance facility getting rebuilt due to lack of maintenance (i.e. water instead of coolamt, lack of preventive maintenance…). MARTA had several busses painted white to cover the missing 3rd of the C-tran fleet because they weren’t allowed to run MARTA colors in Clayton. On time reliability and performance improved dramatically. They also ran at or above capacity at peak times. When C-tran lost fed funding the Clayton County commissioners wouldn’t allow a binding referendum to bring MARTA into the county. Instead they let the system get scrapped.
The problem MARTA has is that the smaller counties outside its service area are run by good ol’ boys that see no money in it for them. They successfully killed commuter rail when Purdue got in office, and do everything they can to hamstring MARTA. What they want to have is a privatized system so there is kickback money. MARTA. Operated C-tran in Clayton until it was privatized. 1st Transit took it over, ran it into the ground, and MARTA ended up with it again. C-tran had 24 busses, and for @ least 4 months 8 of their busses were @ MARTA’s heavy maintenance facility getting rebuilt due to lack of maintenance (i.e. water instead of coolamt, lack of preventive maintenance…). MARTA had several busses painted white to cover the missing 3rd of the C-tran fleet because they weren’t allowed to run MARTA colors in Clayton. On time reliability and performance improved dramatically. They also ran at or above capacity at peak times. When C-tran lost fed funding the Clayton County commissioners wouldn’t allow a binding referendum to bring MARTA into the county. Instead they let the system get scrapped.
A city and Metro area the size of Atlanta has not kept its public transit system up with the area’s real needs. On the other hand, some new toll roads and toll lanes were built, and for the times I’ve driven through there recently, not many folks are using them except for a few speeding jackasses. Georgia spends way too much money on new roads and has ignored much needed safety upgrades for exisiting roads and calls for bringing better mass transit to heavily populated areas. Too many rural folks in the state legislature could care less about the cities and are more intersted in curing their gas pedal blues than they are in having a safe, efficinet transportation system statewide. No wonder why Georgia’s highways seem to be e perpetual construction zone.